About Us

Dogs are the oldest domesticated animal, living alongside humans for thousands of years — so it's no surprise that humans and man's best friend share so many unique qualities.

What is surprising, however, is that ancient dogs ate an uncomplicated diet of, primarily meat. Thousands of years later our domesticated furry friends are discovering the health benefits of eating a diet their ancestors ate. Nutrition has come full circle.

Valiant Pet – The Dog Food for People that Don’t Buy Dog Food

In researching modern day canine illnesses such as cancer, allergies, skin conditions, obesity, epilepsy, arthritis and gastrointestinal disorders, we realized that nutrition played a significant role in overall dog health.

We then searched high and low for a commercially available low carb, ketogenic dog food that we could feed our dogs - Guess what? - we couldn't find one. So, we created our own.

What are we really all about? – We are a group of nutrition geeks who believe in their hearts that you are what you eat. That goes for our dogs too. Our furry friends form an integral part of our family – we want them to eat food that promotes optimal health, longevity, and quality of life. For years we used to go to the grocery store to make our own dog food from scratch - What a pain that was! Not anymore. That’s why Valiant Pet was created, and why we say, Valiant Pet is The Dog Food for People that Don’t Buy Dog Food. It is also the dog food fed exclusively at the nonprofit, KetoPet.

A ketogenic diet is not a fad diet. Ketogenic diets have been around since the early 1920’s. There have been numerous scientific studies on the benefits of ketogenic diets in humans. There are starting to be more scientific studies on the benefits of ketogenic diets in dogs.

WHAT IS A KETOGENIC DOG FOOD?

The ketogenic diet closely replicates the way a dog would eat in nature. It’s a diet that is higher in fat, adequate in protein, and low in digestible carbohydrates. Eating this way will encourage a natural process in the body that includes switching the body’s primary fuel source from carbohydrates to fats.

Without an abundance of carbs, the liver begins to produce ketone bodies that are preferentially used by the body and brain as energy. In humans, studies have shown that ketogenic diets can improve cognitive function, physical performance, reduce inflammation and help regulate blood sugar as a result of its ideal balance of low net carbs and slow-digesting fat. Numerous studies are currently validating the diet as a therapy in humans dealing with cancer, diabetes, seizures, obesity, and even Alzheimer's disease.

In 1924, Otto Warburg determined that cancer uses glucose as its primary fuel source. This became known as the Warburg Effect and it has informed and guided much of the cancer research that has been done in relation to the ketogenic being used as a metabolic therapy.

The Warburg Effect was an important principle used in the metabolic therapy used at the KetoPet Sanctuary. KetoPet is a nonprofit organization that studies the effects of nutrition in canine diseases. It is one of the reasons we feel so strongly that we need to feed our dogs the diet they evolved to eat – a diet rich in fats and adequate protein while not giving dogs a copious amount of digestible carbohydrates.

Originally developed at Johns Hopkins University in the 1920’s, a ketogenic diet was originally used by doctors in the treatment of childhood epilepsy. Dog’s suffer from epilepsy too. Epilepsy is a seizure disorder and one of the most common neurological disorders in dogs.

Dog Nutrition Comes Full Circle

In a recent trial published in the British Journal of Medicine, a ketogenic diet for dogs helped prevent seizures in dogs with epilepsy. According to study author, Tsz Hong Law of the Royal Veterinary College in Hatfield, United Kingdom, of the 21 dogs in the trial, seven experienced a 50% reduction in seizure frequency, while three became seizure free.

For the past 5 years, the nonprofit, KetoPet has been validating ketogenic diets. and their impact on dog health. Visit them here at KetoPet